I’ve heard rumblings that some people are thinking the new Joker is Jason Todd. I have to say that if that’s the case, I’m very not okay with it. The Joker is supposed to be the antithesis to Batman, and having him be one of the former Robins adds an emotional layer to the dynamic that actually ruins the relationship. The Joker is supposed to be the erratic enigma that constantly eludes the World’s Greatest Detective. If it’s a former Robin, come back to torture the bat, then it undoes the mental differences and creates the wrong emotional dynamic. There are precedents for Dick and Tim to become the Joker (The Dark Knight Returns and Batman Beyond, respectively), but neither of those actually worked as canon.

The other big problem is that it virtually eliminates the possibility of a “Under the Red Hood” style Batman storyline. For those that don’t know, this storyline showed the return of Jason (revived by the Lazarus pit years after the Joker killed him with a crowbar) as a Punisher-style anti-hero who used guns, intimidation, and organized crime itself to clean up the city in a more “realistic” way. The climax of the story is punctuated by him asking Bruce why he couldn’t kill just once, just the Joker because “he took me away from you”. It’s poignant, earnest, and showing all at the same time.

But I digress. There is a whole legion of casual nerds who have played Arkham Knight and now see everyone potentially as Jason. And man do I hope they’re wrong on this one...